Brewers who didn't make it but you think could have

[coolhandluke121]

Corey Ray.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Boy there have been a lot over the years.

 

Jeff D'Amico - I thought he and Eldred were going to be the two mainstays of a longtime playoff-caliber rotation.

 

Brad Nelson - His minor league stats were terrific. I thought he'd at least be the next coming of Lyle Overbay, but it wasn't to be.

 

Derrick May - Looked like Adonis, and could hit the ball out of the park in batting practice, but free swinging and injuries curtailed him.

 

Lyle Mouton - Looked like he was built for 600-ft HRs, but nope.

 

Marc Newfield - So, so much promise ... unfulfilled.

 

Todd Dunn - 1st round draft pick that just didn't hit enough.

 

Chris Saenz - One game, 6 shutout innings against the Cardinals. So much hope for an actual home-grown starting pitching prospect. Got hurt, and never heard from again. Probably the most "Brewers" career of all time.

 

Oh, and how could I forget my boy Joey Meyer

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Corey Ray.

 

We get it, you don't like Ray. That's not really the point of this thread at all, though. Move your hate along.

[OnaBadger58]

I really thought Mark Rogers, if it weren't for his injuries, would have been a good SP for the Crew.

[KeithStone53151]

Santo Manzanillo. I thought he was going to be a stud back end reliever. Car accident man, shoulder never was the same. This guy is exhibit A of why I'm so nervous about Nelson.

[LouisEly]

Joey Meyer is on my list too. Not even given a full season to prove himself. 516 career plate appearances, but he struck out too much... you know, 124 times in those 516 plate appearances, a 24% clip.

 

Not sure if that would even be among the 10 highest on any of the last two teams.

[KeithStone53151]

Joey Meyer is on my list too. Not even given a full season to prove himself. 516 career plate appearances, but he struck out too much... you know, 124 times in those 516 plate appearances, a 24% clip.

 

Not sure if that would even be among the 10 highest on any of the last two teams.

 

Not to derail the thread too much, but I saw a stat recently that Judge struck out more times in this 5 game playoff series than Tony Gwynn did in 577 PA in 1995. I then looked at the best K rates from 1995 to 2017. In 1995 Gwynn was best with 2.6%, but the next guy was at like 4.8% or something and there were quite a few guy in the 5-7% range. This year, Panik was the best full time player around 9.4% while Revere was the best overall with 8.2%. Different game.

[djoctagone]

caleb smith. i was devastated when the brewers traded him to the cubs.

[coolhandluke121]

Corey Ray.

 

We get it, you don't like Ray. That's not really the point of this thread at all, though. Move your hate along.

 

I've never mentioned Corey Ray in a single thread before and it was satire about giving up on prospects too soon. I didn't intend it to serve as bait for people who look for any reason to be antagonistic, but apparently it served that purpose as well. It's fair to miss the satire but I think you should take your own advice about moving the hate along.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Corey Ray.

 

We get it, you don't like Ray. That's not really the point of this thread at all, though. Move your hate along.

 

I've never mentioned Corey Ray in a single thread before and it was satire about giving up on prospects too soon. I didn't intend it to serve as bait for people who look for any reason to be antagonistic, but apparently it served that purpose as well. It's fair to miss the satire but I think you should take your own advice about moving the hate along.

 

Yeah, it was several other posters hating on Ray. Sorry about that. You must have read the same stuff on the Top 100 thread in the Minor League forum. Zeroing in the hate on a few players in the system seems to be a running theme lately around here. Ray has been a target lately, but before that it was Villar and Broxton. Phillips was taking heat earlier in the season. Granted, Villar and Broxton justified the negativity somewhat this season.

[coolhandluke121]

Yeah, it was several other posters hating on Ray. Sorry about that. You must have read the same stuff on the Top 100 thread in the Minor League forum. Zeroing in the hate on a few players in the system seems to be a running theme lately around here. Ray has been a target lately, but before that it was Villar and Broxton. Phillips was taking heat earlier in the season. Granted, Villar and Broxton justified the negativity somewhat this season.

 

I've used this name on RealGM for almost 10 years and I didn't realize there was already a CHL here, so maybe you had me confused with him. I've basically said I want to give Broxton and Villar another chance in almost every post about next year's roster since the day I joined bf.net, so I definitely am not a sell-low or give up young guys person. I did want to trade Villar last year because I thought it was sell-high chance, and I do hate his decision-making, but I'm generally all for riding out the bumps in a young guy's development.

 

Ray does need to produce though. I think criticism is fair. Production is a better indicator of future success than tools or physical gifts.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

Ray does need to produce though. I think criticism is fair. Production is a better indicator of future success than tools or physical gifts.

 

Agreed. Ray may have more pressure on him to produce than any other player in the system in 2018. His production was one of the few blemishes on what was a pretty solid season prospect-wise for the Brewers. Diaz was probably another, though he's younger. Man that Carolina team sure looked like it had a lot of upside coming into the season.

[MadScientist]

Back to the topic, I remember thinking Bob Skube showed promise when he got his cup of coffee in 82. But sporadic playing time in 83 didn't work out and got him sent down, never to be heard from again. Minor league numbers look like he could have earned another shot.

 

I don't know how much was what I thought I saw, or just wanting to hear cries of "Skube do!" when he got a big hit.

[ClosetBrewerFan]

Nick Neugebauer. Great minor league K/9 numbers but very wild. Was rushed to the majors then got hurt. Too bad. Would have been fun to see what he could have done.

[Invader3K]

Nick Neugebauer. Great minor league K/9 numbers but very wild. Was rushed to the majors then got hurt. Too bad. Would have been fun to see what he could have done.

 

I was just thinking about him the other day. IIRC, he had a pretty hot fastball as well.

[jerichoholicninja]

I saw Dana Eveland throw a game for Beloit and thought that guy's gonna be an MLB pitcher someday. I guess a 10 year MLB career isn't really "not making it" but he's pretty much done nothing but be bad 99% of the time in those 10 years. Can't believe he's only 33.

 

In that same game Will Lewis hit a bomb. He destroyed A pitching that year for .930 OPS, held his own the next year in AA, and then went to Indy obscurity before retiring.

[adambr2]

The late Jose Capellan. He was an as exciting of a relief prospect as you'd see when we acquired him for closer Danny Kolb. The scouting reports raved about his fastball which reportedly sat in the mid to upper 90s and hit triple digits at times. Unfortunately when he was called up to Milwaukee his upper 90s fastball looked a lot more like 91-92 and never lived up to the hype.

 

Speaking of Dan Kolb, I knew he was more of a pitch to contact type closer, but holy smokes, 3.3K/9 for us as our closer in 2004 before trading him? You just don't see 3K/9 closers.

 

Heck, you don't see 3K/9 pitchers.

[LouisEly]

Nick Neugebauer. Great minor league K/9 numbers but very wild. Was rushed to the majors then got hurt. Too bad. Would have been fun to see what he could have done.

In his first full minor league season at the age of 19 in 2000 he threw 128 innings, walked 134 and struck out 174 (he also only gave up 2 HRs in those 128 innings).

 

No wonder he burned out.

[AKCheesehead]

A couple guys 10 years ago who blossomed after leaving our system: Grant Balfour and RA Dickey. When Dickey had a nice year for us in Nashville in '07, he couldn't crack the big league rotation that featured the downward trending Suppan, Bush, Capuano and Vargas, nor the bullpen that gave 50 innings to Chris Spurling. Granted, it wasn't until '10 when Dickey really hit his stride in the big leagues, so it's a bit of a reach to think he was going to make it with Milwaukee, but we'll never know.

 

Balfour had eye popping numbers in AAA Nashville that year 1.87 era, .929 whip and 14.1 k/9. But in an awful 2.2 big league innings he didn't get the rent, and out the door he went. To Tampa Bay, where he scuffled the rest of 07 before lighting it up in 08.

[brewcrewdue80]

Growing up, following sports for me sporadically began in 1988-1990. So in 1992 ROY Pat Listach and that winning team, I figured we hit gold with Listach. But then we let Molitor walk, who was my absolute favorite at the time and Listach practically disappeared after that season.

 

Want a more current name since joining this site?

Jason Rogers. 1b has been a black hole for Milwaukee post Prince Fielder. I thought he was going to be a young cost controlled contributor in the realms of our own Eric Hosmer type of 1b.

[sheetskout]

Tell me about it. I was sure he'd be huge. Still own all of these.

 

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i229/sheetskout/Prospect%20Portfolio/2004_Bowman_Chrome_Angel_Salome_XFr.jpg

 

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i229/sheetskout/Prospect%20Portfolio/2004_Bowman_Chrome_Angel_Salome_Gol.jpg

 

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i229/sheetskout/Prospect%20Portfolio/angelSalomeRefs2.jpg

[bjkrautk]

I saw Dana Eveland throw a game for Beloit and thought that guy's gonna be an MLB pitcher someday. I guess a 10 year MLB career isn't really "not making it" but he's pretty much done nothing but be bad 99% of the time in those 10 years. Can't believe he's only 33.

 

That story reminds me of going to Appleton to see a John Jaha rehab appearance back in the 90s. I only remember one other player on the field that day: Bucky Jacobsen was playing in the outfield. "Moneyball" used to talk about the eyeball test; Jaha and Jacobsen just looked physically different from all the other guys. I thought for sure he'd be a major leaguer.

 

...and he was, albeit ever so briefly.

http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=2368&position=1B/DH

 

Not sure if he got hurt during that year with Jack Z's Mariners, or why he never played in the majors again after that season.

[liveforoctober]

I saw Dana Eveland throw a game for Beloit and thought that guy's gonna be an MLB pitcher someday. I guess a 10 year MLB career isn't really "not making it" but he's pretty much done nothing but be bad 99% of the time in those 10 years. Can't believe he's only 33.

 

That story reminds me of going to Appleton to see a John Jaha rehab appearance back in the 90s. I only remember one other player on the field that day: Bucky Jacobsen was playing in the outfield. "Moneyball" used to talk about the eyeball test; Jaha and Jacobsen just looked physically different from all the other guys. I thought for sure he'd be a major leaguer.

 

...and he was, albeit ever so briefly.

http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=2368&position=1B/DH

 

Not sure if he got hurt during that year with Jack Z's Mariners, or why he never played in the majors again after that season.

 

Not sure how many rehab games John Jaha went on in Appleton ... but I don't think it was many and I was at this game I believe. I remember Jaha popping out and getting hit by a pitch. I also remember a line drive going into the stands and hitting a woman in the face. Off topic, but you saying that brought back some memories.

[jerichoholicninja]

I never knew that Jacobsen was Brewers property at any point. You look at his minor league numbers (career OPS over .900 and OBP over .380) and then what he did in a short time with the Mariners (.835 OPS over 176 PA) it's really surprising he never got an MLB shot again. I'm sure he was a butcher in the field but those are pretty good hitting numbers.

[Point Beer Is Best]

I seem to recall Salome being suspended for an ADHD drug (Adderall, I think) due to not having the required paperwork filed (similar to Mike Cameron suspension). And things started to unwind quickly after that.